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It is the end of December and I keep forgetting that it is also the end of the year. So to commemorate the last days of 2012, I have put together a list of several music favourites that is a bit of an atypical listicle instead of a traditional end of year music blog post. Here are the musicians and their albums that were inspiring, addictive, and my favourites for 2012.

ALBUM THAT MAKES YOU BELIEVE IN MUSIC AGAIN

Grimes was everywhere in 2012 and for a good reason. Her fourth effort since 2010, Visions, is utterly fantastic and hypnotic, aptly described as “witch house.” Visions sounds like no other album before but with its lo-fi dance beats and girlish vocals it is still catchy and, in my opinion, very accessible. I can honestly say that her work makes me have hope that talented musicians can still reach the masses without the requirements of booty shaking and Nickelback replications. Other than Nightmusic (video above), also check out Genesis and its wacky Japanese anime and samurai inspired video.

BEST ALBUM FOR PRODUCTIVE DAYS

I love finding musicians and their albums that serve as background music for work days, and Burial makes quite a few great tracks for this purpose. His Kindred EP came out earlier this year with three strong tracks, and Loner (above) is the highlight of this issue. The Mercury Prize nominated artist has two full albums and several EPs, including collaborations with Thom Yorke and Four Tet, and as I am big fans of both Radiohead and Four Tet I am not surprised that the resulting works are solid.

Listen to more tracks and read my previous posts about music for productivity in these November and December posts: Things That Go Bump in the NightPart One (electronic tracks) and Part Two(alternative tracks). Look out for Part Three for instrumental jazz music and Part Four, to conclude the series, in the new year.

Solange’s new video is just about the most uplifting thing I have come across all day. Beautiful people with great hair, in bright clothes, cycling around on a gorgeous sunny day. As a resident of England, it has provided me with a bit of relief. I think the bar might be quite low though: scenes of scorching desert heat during my viewing of The Hurt Locker — probably the most tense and violent film I have seen this year — have also triggered similarly heartwarming feelings!